romanian memory

one of the things that has alway stuck with me since i was a teenager was after the downfall of ceausescu in romania (1989) when the common romanian people were allowed to go through his houses for a tour to see what kind of lifestyle he was living while they scraped by in poverty. i remember the news reports showed throngs of people shuffling through his main mansion, stuffed with fine artifacts and artwork, utterly stunned to see the riches he had been accumulating secretly and at their expense – the outrage those people displayed at how they had been misled by their leader and
“comrade”.

i often wonder if it will be like that as civilization collapses – will regular folk finally get to see the criminal wealth that some have lived with at the expense of the rest of us? and we will be shocked and horrified at what was done for the privelege of a few for so many decades?